Kiss Me as the World Burns Down (Sirius BlackOC)
by HPfanatic123
Summary: "Hey c'mon Greengrass, you know better than to mess with a Marauder." "Marauder? Is that what you're officially calling yourselves now? Very mature." She scoffed, "Also you should know better than to mess with a prefect." "Well, I don't know about that...my pal Remus is a prefect too. Shouldn't your authorities outweigh each other?"


**Disclaimer: The Wizarding World of Harry Potter belongs to J.K Rowling and her alone. I don't own the characters or the story (obviously).**

 _Author's note: I've been working on this idea for a story for nearly 2 years now and finally mustered up the effort to write it. Feedback will be highly appreciated. I hope you all enjoy reading about Daphne Greengrass as much as I enjoyed writing her (she will NOT be a mary sue I swear)._

 _ **Chapter 1 - Ignite**_

"So Daph, thoughts on the dismissal of Jenkins?" Nott asked with a smirk on his face.

Daphne Greengrass had known this question would be thrown at her by someone as soon as she boarded the train. During her past four years at Hogwarts, she had gained the reputation of being a highly opinionated person. The irony was, she seldom ever meant what she said but people continued to buy it.

"I'm sure you are already aware of my views regarding the replacement of Jenkins in favour of Minchum as Minister. I don't think he's a good leader," she pauses, choosing her next words carefully, "For us I mean. He's too aggressive. It would suit the Dark Lord's cause to have someone milder."

Daphne didn't really believe this. A month ago, Eugenia Jenkins was dismissed as the Minister of Magic, replaced by Harold Minchum who was thought to be a more disciplined personality and expected to better contain the chaos of the war. Since she followed the politics of the magical world, Daphne knew that dismissing Jenkins was not only a misogynistic decision ("Women can't deal with war") but an impractical one since she was strategically superior to the impetuous new Minister. She had demonstrated great wisdom and intelligence during the pureblood riots of late 60s. But Daphne had enough sense to not say this in a compartment full of future death eaters. She molded the honest statement to something they'd want to hear.

Nott gave an appreciative nod while Daphne fought the urge to roll her eyes. She seldom ever tried to be subtle with the underlying disregard for blood purist ideas but it seemed like her fellow Slytherins only heard what they wanted to. Not all of them were this oblivious though; Daphne noticed Shiv give her long look with a slight smirk on his face after she was done speaking.

She was on the Hogwarts Express, sitting in between Alexa Carrow and Freddy Rosier while Ed Nott and Shiv Shafiq occupied the seats in front of them. With the exception of Shiv, she didn't really think much of any of her 'friends'. They had chosen to sit in the same compartment during their first year and hung out with each other ever since. She hadn't always felt this indifferent towards them; she had started off as an optimistic 11 year old, eager to meet her peers but had soon learned that she had limited options in that area as a Slytherin who didn't want a Muggle genocide.

Alexa Carrow was a product of acute indoctrination. Daphne could not really bring herself to blame her for the way she was. Alexa shared the blood elitist views of her parents and her prime goal of being in Hogwarts was to find a suitable partner to marry. Freddy and Ed were pretty much the same except more actively extremist and might choose to work after marriage. Marriage was obviously a priority for the lot of them.

Shiv was different. Pureblood wizards might like to say that the only thing they care about is blood purity but the ground realities don't reflect this. Though Shiv too was from a well-reputed pureblood family of Shafiq, the color of his skin set him apart. No one acknowledges this, but they all know it's there – the creeping shadow of racism within the wizarding community.

Shiv and Daphne mostly stayed quiet while the others engaged in a heated debate about their favourite Quidditch teams. They glanced at each other now and then, the tension of Shiv knowing the real reason why she supported Jenkins lingered. Daphne was just about to loudly wonder why they hadn't arrived yet when she felt the train slowing down.

"We're here. C'mon Daph. We have prefect duties." Shiv got up and nudged her to follow him.

...

Right after Lockhart, Gilderoy was put into Ravenclaw, Daphne lost interest in the sorting. Anxieties regarding the upcoming year starting plaguing her thoughts instead. She would have to balance her prefect duties with quidditch practices and a more unrelenting burden of school work than ever since it was O.W.L. year. Moreover, all of this was bound to clash with the other plans she had for this year.

Daphne, unbeknownst to her parents and friends, had been in touch with many activists of the Wizarding World over the summer. She had contacted Squib rights organizers as well as muggle allies and come to the conclusion that the restoration of Eugenia Jenkins was essential for the betterment of the community. She wanted to contribute to the larger movement in favor of Jenkins that was already underway outside Hogwarts. She just needed to figure out how.

...

Daphne was on her way back to the Slytherin common room after completing her rounds to make sure no students were out after curfew time when she spotted someone standing mysteriously at the end of a corridor, muttering to himself. She could only make out the guy's black hair and back but it was enough for her to recognize the silhouette as Sirius Black.

She had known Sirius Black since she was a toddler. They had never been fast friends but got along well enough at pureblood dinner parties. This was before Hogwarts. Ever since they had been sorted into rival houses, the dynamics of their relationship had changed. They never acknowledged each other's existence at Hogwarts unless they ran into each other, then they often exchanged friendly smiles. At family gatherings over the summer, they greeted each other amiably but never interacted too much.

As she approached his figure quietly, Daphne could make out the words he was mumbling: "No no no, it's not working, I told you we need to try a different spell, maybe-" He was holding a parchment in his hand and something that seemed like a small mirror in his other hand, which is what he was also talking at.

"Black? What are you doing?" Daphne said in a hushed tone. She was standing right behind him now.

Sirius gave a start and instinctively pocketed both the parchment and the object he was holding while turning around in a rage to face whoever had sneaked up on him. He was surprised to come face to face with Daphne Greengrass.

"Daphne? What the hell are you doing here?" He asked, completely bewildered.

"Me? Why don't you tell me what you're doing muttering to yourself in a corridor way past the curfew?" Daphne said, raising an eyebrow.

Sirius was quiet for a few seconds before he smirked irksomely and said: "Hey, c'mon Greengrass, you know better than to mess with a Marauder."

"Marauder? Is that what you're officially calling yourselves now? Very mature." She scoffed and then added smugly, "Also you should know better than to mess with a prefect." She saw him steal a glance at her badge and was sure she had him there.

"Well, I don't know about that….my pal Remus is a prefect too. Shouldn't your authorities outweigh each other?" He chuckled.

"Ummm, no? What the hell?" Daphne was really frustrated. The thought of her dorm was too inviting.

Sirius sensed her agitation and decided it was probably best to give up right now and continue his work later. He gave her a half smile and said rather politely, "Okay I didn't realize you were prefect okay? I'm on my back back. I was just kidding jeez."

Daphne narrowed her eyes and gave him a long look before deciding that trying to penalize him on the first day back wasn't worth the trouble.

"Alright then. You should be on your way Siriu-" Daphne stopped midway and mentally punched herself for the slip of tongue; Slytherins should only refer to Gryffindors by using their surnames in a loathsome tone.

This certainly did not escape Sirius's notice as he gave Daphne a half-smile: "Well, I'll be on my way Daph." And with that, he promptly turned around and walked away.

 **What do you guys think? I had to really control myself with this chapter; didn't want to rush things and give too much information at once. Also, there are many Easter eggs scattered around in this chapter, cannon facts of the Wizarding World. Can you spot them all? Please review and follow! xxxxx**


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